The United Nations (UN) Secretary-General, António Guterres, has announced that Israel’s military has been blacklisted and added to the global list of offenders violating children’s rights.
Israel’s envoy to the UN, Gilad Erdan, was informed of this decision on Friday, and the UN Security Council is set to be briefed on the resolution on June 14. The decision follows Israel’s eight-month offensive on Gaza.
The UN released data on 8 May 2024, indicating that 34,844 people, including 4,959 women and 7,797 children, had been killed since the conflict began.
The Israeli envoy has denounced the decision to blacklist Israel’s military, calling it shameful.
“I am utterly shocked and disgusted by this shameful decision of the secretary-general,” Erdan said.
“Israel’s army is the most moral army in the world so this immoral decision will only aid the terrorists and reward Hamas.”
Israel Katz, Israel’s foreign minister, said the decision “will have consequences for Israel’s relations with the UN”.
The already rocky relationship between the UN and Israel has further deteriorated since the conflict between Israel and Hamas. Israel’s Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, and Defence Minister, Yoav Gallant, have been accused of war crimes. Netanyahu, Gallant, and three Hamas chiefs — Yahya Sinwar, leader of the Palestinian militant group; Mohammed Al-Masri, leader of the Al Qassem Brigades; and Ismail Haniyeh, Hamas’ political leader — are wanted by the International Criminal Court (ICC).